Reading the Bones
by Ann Parker
Summary: Criminal MindsXBones Crossover. The BAU team gets a case that requires the expertise of Dr. Brennan. But what happens when these two teams mix? Will they be able to work together without incident? And what happens when you mix two geniuses together?
1. Monday Morning

Disclaimer: I do not own Criminal Minds. It is the property of Mark R. Gordon and CBS. I also do not own Bones, property of Hart Hanson and FOX.

Author's Note: Here is the timeline: For Criminal Minds, it's up to episode 2x13, "No Way Out," which means no The Big Game/Revelations, no possible drug problems for Reid, and no issues between him and Emily. For Bones, its up to episode, 2x12, "The Girl in the Gator," except, for the sake of the story, Sully was her partner briefly while Booth had his therapy, but nothing developed relationship wise. For those that don't know a great deal about one of the shows, I tried to somewhat describe the characters a little in the beginning here to give you a feel for them. Hope it helps! Oh, and for any shippers out there, this is not really going to be a romantic story, but I did throw in some tidbits of flirting/feelings between the following: JJxReid, MorganxGarcia, BoothxBones, and AngelaxHodgins (they'll be obvious since they are dating).

This is being simultaneously posted under Bones as "The Profilers in the Lab."

Thanks to Whiteowl1 for beta reading and letting me bounce ideas off of you!

And, as always, please read and review! The more feedback, the quicker I tend to update! Although don't expect it to be as rapid as it was with "Reid's Miracle" or "Perfection."

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**Reading the Bones**

Chapter One: Monday Morning

By Ann Parker

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Dr. Spencer Reid, in his usual attire of brown pants, stripped shirt, loosely fitted tie, messenger bag, and of course, two different colored socks, strolled into the break room of the Behavioral Analysis Unit of the FBI headquarters in Quantico. It was 8:20 am on a sunny Monday morning. He found his best friend, Derek Morgan, in black pants and a blue dress shirt that was sure to make every woman stop and stare, talking with Emily Prentiss, their newest team member. She was wearing her usual pants suit. They both turned to greet him as he walked over to the coffee pot.

"Morning Reid," Emily offered with a kind smile. He smiled back as he poured his coffee.

"Did you have a good weekend?" Morgan asked, taking a sip of the liquid caffeine. Reid didn't notice the older man shake his head as he used ten packets of sugar in his coffee.

"I wasn't here, so that's a plus," Reid replied with a slight smile. They others nodded in agreement as he took a drink. He ran a hand through his mop top of brown hair, pushing it out of his eyes. A few days off with no phone calls was a blessing for the BAU team.

"Morning Spence," greeted JJ, their blond liaison in her usual skirt and suit jacket. Reid smiled at the use of her nickname for him. Just the sound of it could still make his heart flutter, even after all this time. She quickly grabbed a cup of coffee as well, the common drug for the group.

"Morning JJ," he replied, even though she was almost out the door again, her hair swinging behind her. Man how he loved that sight.

"We have a case, guys," she added, looking back at them quickly as she exited the room. You could almost hear all three sigh. They loved their jobs, but a new case meant there was a new killer, arsonist, or some other form of evil that was loose again. The group followed her as they headed up a small flight of stairs to the conference room.

"Morning Sugar, Emily, Reid," greeted Penelope Garcia, their computer technician, joining them in their journey once they reached the second level. Morgan couldn't stop the smile that crept across his face at the sound of her voice. He quickly took in her appearance – her blond hair pulled up in several little buns, a red top, and a black and white checkered skirt – and his smile only grew. He didn't notice Reid and Emily glance at each other and smile at his reaction.

"Morning gorgeous," he replied as they entered the conference room. Garcia flashed him a bright smile in response. They found their two leaders, Aaron Hotchner in his FBI standard issue suit and tie and Jason Gideon in his casual attire that almost mirrored Reid, already there and examining the crime scene photos. The younger group exchanged looks as they noticed the photos of two bodies on the bulletin boards behind the table. Well, bodies might not be the best description. They were hardly recognizable as humans – there were jagged cuts and burns all over. It looked more like a pile of charred meat with flashes of red where the cut muscles were exposed. Limbs were contorted in odd positions. To an innocent passerby, it might be hard to figure out which end was which. It was a good thing the blinds were still closed on the two large windows in the room.

"Well, I'm glad I haven't eaten anything yet this morning," commented Emily as they took their seats. Even for their well-trained eyes, it was almost too much to see. Particularly at 8:24 in the morning. They settled in around the large, circular table as JJ filled them in on the case.

"Two bodies have been discovered at different locations around the capital in the last two days. At the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial, to be exact. The authorities have managed to keep it out of the press as of now, but that probably won't last long. There was no usable evidence at the crime scenes. Due to the extreme state of the bodies, the local coroner was unable to determine the official cause of death or identify the victims," JJ stated as they looked over the photos.

"No fingerprints?" asked Reid.

"The unsub cut off their fingertips," stated Gideon.

"And their faces are unrecognizable," added Hotch.

Morgan leaned back in his chair. "So we've got two bodies that can't be identified, no cause of death, and we have nothing to go on about the unsub's motivation other than the locations chosen for dumping the bodies," he reviewed, receiving nods from the rest. "Well, this should be a piece of cake."

"You know," commented Emily after a moment. "I have a friend that works in the Forensic division at the Jeffersonian. Maybe he could help us identify the bodies."

"Call him," ordered Gideon, removing his small wire framed glasses and rubbing his eyes. "Something tells me we're going to need any help we can get with this one." Emily nodded and stepped out of the room to make the call.

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Special Agent Seeley Booth strolled into his office at the J. Edgar Hoover Building in DC, tucking his red shades into the pocket of his suit jacket. He sat down, taking a sip of his coffee, just waiting for a case to come across his desk. He hadn't had one in almost a week, which meant he had no excuse to bother Bones or the squints. Leaning back, he propped his feet up on his desk, exposing his red stripped socks. If he leaned back just a little farther, he would have been able to see the picture of the American flag on his back wall. As it were, he stared at the old, plaster ceiling and sighed. If his phone didn't ring pretty soon, it was going to be a very long day.

Around the same time, Dr. Temperance Brennan, in her typical apparel of black dress pants and dark green dress top that brought out her eyes, walked into her far more spacious office at the Jeffersonian Institute. She set down her bag and coffee cup on her clear, glass desk. As she sat down and turned on her computer, she pushed some of her wavy brown hair behind her ear. The break from the cases had given her time to plot out her next book, but she wasn't really interested in it. She was beginning to actually miss Booth sticking his head through her glass door and making some comment she didn't understand before telling her to grab her kit.

"Good morning!" greeted Angela Montenegro as she walked through the door. She was adorning a wavy skirt, pink top, and a couple of beaded necklaces, her usual fashionable, and yet slightly Bohemian style. It fit her personality perfectly. The colors seemed to match the glow from her smile. Brennan smiled slightly; clearly Angela was in a better mood than herself.

"You seem happy," she replied, only to get a sly smile in response.

"Nothing like sex in the morning to make even a Monday a good day," Angela replied.

"Well, that was more than I needed to hear," stated Dr. Camille Saroyan from the doorway, looking professional as usual in her suit. "Good morning," she added, a small, kind smile on her face. Slowly, but surely, she had been accepted into the group. Angela and Brennan returned the greeting. "I'll be in my office if Booth shows up."

"Okay," Brennan replied and Cam walked off. "Wouldn't that be nice," she added to herself as she looked back at her desk, not noticing Angela's smile.

"Dr. Brennan, do you want me to finish cataloging those bones?" Brennan looked back up to see Dr. Zack Abby, already in his blue lab coat, standing in the doorway. Even though he was no longer her graduate student, he still felt the need to check in with her.

"Yes, that would be good. I'll be there in a few minutes to help you," Brennan replied. At least the break had given them time to catch up on the backlog the board wanted them to work on. Right now it was remains of soldiers from World War II. Zack nodded and walked away.

"I'll let you get back to daydreaming about Booth," teased Angela, out the door before Brennan could reply. What was that supposed to mean? She watched with her green eyes as Angela made her way over to Dr. Jack Hodgins, who appeared to be on the phone. It would be nice if her phone rang.

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"Okay, Jack said that they should be able to help, but that we should go through the agent that works with them on federal cases," stated Emily, walking back into the conference room.

"Who is it?" asked Hotch, quickly grabbing a pen and paper.

"A Special Agent Seeley Booth."

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	2. Introductions

**Reading the Bones**

Chapter Two: Introductions

By Ann Parker

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"Where's Bones?" asked Booth as he strolled up to Hodgins' desk. Hodgins and Angela, clearly not doing anything work related, both looked up. Booth noticed that Hodgins had a book about the Kennedy Assassination turned upside down and rolled his eyes. At least Angela distracted him from his numerous conspiracy theories.

"She was with Zack cataloging bones," replied Angela. Booth nodded and turned to find Brennan.

"Do we have a new case?" asked Hodgins, curious to see if they were going to help out Emily and her team. Booth stopped and turned back to them.

"Sort of. We're sharing a case," he replied.

"Since when do we share?" asked Brennan, almost making Booth jump. He turned to find her and Zack now standing behind him.

"Geez, Bones, don't sneak up on a guy," he teased only to receive a blank stare. She clearly didn't get it. "Since the BAU asked for your expertise and I gladly offered it," he added.

"What's the BAU?" asked Zack.

"The Behavioral Analysis Unit of the FBI," Booth stated. He immediately noticed Brennan raise an eyebrow.

"So, the psychology unit?" she asked, clearly skeptical.

"That's part of what they use, yes. Look, Bones, you can ask them more details when they get here. All I know is that this is the team that helped catch the Footpath Killer, the Tommy Killer, and the Mill Creek Killer, to name a few. That makes them pretty damn good in my book." He hoped that would satisfy her. He wasn't overly thrilled with sharing a case either, but it seemed like they really wanted their help and he needed something to do. Besides, Agent Hotchner sounded like a descent guy on the phone and Jason Gideon was a legend. Never mind the fact that they had seniority over him anyway.

Brennan seemed to accept his answer and nodded, "Okay. What's the case?"

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"We're all set," stated Hotch as he reached Morgan, Reid, and Emily in the bullpen with JJ right behind him. They had gone back to their desks to get a few things if they were going to leave. "We're clear to set up at the Jeffersonian so we're not wasting time when Dr. Brennan has her findings." He wanted them to work there because it was closer to the crime scenes. It was the best way to try and stop this from happening again.

"Dr. Brennan? As in Dr. Temperance Brennan, the world renowned forensic anthropologist and author?" asked Reid, clearly excited.

"Yes, I believe so," replied Hotch, cautiously.

"Got a little genius crush on her or something?" teased Morgan.

"No, she's just at the top of her field. We're lucky to be working with her," retorted Reid. Morgan, of all people, should know whom he has feelings for.

"We leave in five minutes," injected Hotch before Morgan could make another joke. They nodded and continued gathering their things before heading out on another field trip.

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Gideon and his team pulled up to the Jeffersonian past the large fountain and garden and parked their black, government issued SUVs. As they climbed out, they noticed an agent, standard issued suit and tie and sunglasses intact, standing on the stairs. The crew that came from the coroner's lab wheeled out the two bodies from the back of their van. The agent, which JJ and Emily both noted with feminine appreciation seemed to be a morph of Hotch's seriousness and dress code and Morgan's machoism, came down to greet them.

"You can take the bodies through there," he gestured to a doorway that appeared to be built just for body transport, odd for such a beautiful building. "There should be a group of lab coats waiting for them." The men nodded and went inside as the agent turned back to the team. He took off his shades and Hotch stepped forward.

"Special Agent Booth, I presume," he greeted, sticking out his hand. The man quickly shook it. "Supervisory Special Agent Aaron Hotchner, we spoke on the phone." The man smiled.

"Seeley Booth. Why don't you grab your things and come inside. We'll go through the introductions in there," Booth replied and Hotch nodded. Almost immediately, the team grabbed their gear and followed him inside. As Booth walked, Reid noticed his bright red, stripped socks and grinned to himself. They matched, but hey, at least he's got a sense of humor. As they entered the building, though, the size of the place distracted him, almost awe struck. They had never worked in a place like this before. It was large and spacious, with skylights, glass walkways to separate the two levels, and everything seemed to be state of the art.

"Geez, Reid, you look like a kid in a candy store," teased Emily.

"What? The Jeffersonian is a historical landmark. Did you know that it has over 142 million items in its collections and eight different research centers? This is just one of them." Reid stated, not noticing Booth shaking his head. He almost sounded like one of the squints.

"Sorry, that's something you'll have to get used to with him," Hotch offered, receiving a slight chuckle from Booth.

"Don't worry, I already am," Booth replied right as they reached the rest of his team. They were standing on clear platform a few feet above them. "Bones, they're here." JJ and Morgan exchanged a look. Bones? A woman with wavy, brown hair in a blue lab coat turned around, snapping off her gloves and removing her goggles in the process. She, along with the two men and two women behind her, had been studying the bodies already. The two men and one of the women followed suit, disposing of their soiled gloves. The other woman, a sketchpad in her hands, just turned to them. "Couldn't wait, could you?" Booth teased the one he apparently addressed as Bones, flashing him one of his signature grins. She lightly punched him in the arm as she made her way down the clear staircase. The rest followed and met Booth and Bones at the bottom.

"You didn't mention the amount of flesh remaining. You know I don't work with flesh," she replied, almost ignoring the other agents that just entered her lab.

"So you'll clean them. Besides, that's what Cam is here for," he countered, glaring at her to be quiet. "Okay, time for introductions," Booth stated before she could speak and turned to other agents. "This is Dr. Temperance Brennan." The woman he called Bones nodded. "Dr. Camille Saroyan." The other woman, her hair pulled back in a tight bun, smiled. "Angela Montenegro." The woman with the sketchpad smiled and waved. Her kind eyes and bright smile briefly reminded Morgan of Garcia – friendly, caring, and outgoing. "Dr. Jack Hodgins," a man with curly hair and beard nodded, his arms across his chest. He almost appeared a little hostile and leery of them even though he smiled slightly at Emily. "And lastly, Dr. Zack Addy." A young man that appeared around Reid's age slightly waved and then quickly shoved his hand back into his lab coat pocket, as if suddenly uncomfortable.

"Man, Reid, you should fit right in," jested Morgan, tapping him in the arm.

"None of my doctorates are related to forensic science, Morgan," Reid replied with a blank stare.

"Wait, did you say doctorates? How many do you have?" asked Hodgins.

"Three. Mathematics, physics, and –"

"How old are you?" asked Booth.

"Twenty-five," Reid replied with a shrug, used to this disbelief by now. Hodgins, for his part, seemed somewhat impressed although he wondered why he'd want to work for the government. Cam and Angela both smiled, impressed, even though they _did_ work with Zack and Bones. The latter simply nodded.

Booth started to laugh and roughed up Zack's hair, "Looks like you're not the top genius anymore, Squint."

"I never said that was a goal of mine, Booth," Zack stated. "Besides intelligence can't be accurately quantified and the number of doctorates doesn't equal brain power anyway. I mean, Hodgins has three as well."

"Hey!" exclaimed Hodgins, insulted.

"He's right," commented Reid, receiving a glare from the curly haired scientist. "I mean, not about you, but about quantifying intelligence." He didn't notice JJ smile slightly. Only geniuses wouldn't believe the current methods in measuring intellect.

"Anyway," stated Hotch, getting back to business. "I'm Agent Aaron Hotchner, and these are agents Jason Gideon, Derek Morgan, Emily Prentiss, Jennifer Jareau, and Dr. Spencer Reid." Members of the team nodded as he said their names.

"Alright," commented Booth, clapping his hands together. "Bones, you want to get back to figuring out what happened to…those," he gestured to the bodies.

Brennan nodded and looked at Zack. "Right. Zack, let's go. Cam, did you want to take a look at one as well?" she asked. Cam nodded as they walked over to the bodies. "Hodgins, we'll call you about collecting any particulates when we're done with the initial examination." Hodgins nodded and the three began to transport the bodies.

"I can show you where you can set up," offered Angela.

"Thanks," smiled JJ in return.

"Gideon," interrupted Reid, "Actually I'd like to sit in on the autopsies, if that's okay."

"Good idea, that might give us additional insight into the unsub," Gideon nodded. Reid handed Morgan the case he was carrying, shifted his messenger bag, and shuffled off to catch up with the three doctors, not noticing that Booth had to swipe a card to let him up there.

"Like a kid in a candy store," Emily repeated with a smile. The rest chuckled slightly as Angela showed them where to set up.

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	3. Observations

Author's Note: I'm SOOO sorry for the huge delay in getting this chapter out!!! After chapter two was posted, my beta reader and I hit the last few weeks of class and then finals and we both got too busy and stressed to work on this properly. I swear there won't be that big of a delay with the rest of it!! Hope it was worth the wait! And by the way, were those not great season finales?

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**Reading the Bones**

Chapter Three: Observations

By Ann Parker

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"So, what do you think?" asked Angela. Booth and Hodgins were by her clear glass desk as they watched the BAU team set up. She was allowing them to use a table in her lab near her artwork so they had a good view to watch the team operate.

"They seem…nice. Not any weirder than you squints," replied Booth, taking a sip of his coffee. They watched as files, photographs, and lab reports were spread out.

"I'm still not comfortable with a bunch of G-men in this lab," muttered Hodgins, receiving a glare from Booth. He was a friend of Emily's and willing to help, but it still meant more government agents in his place of work, something he found unsettling.

"G-men?" asked JJ with a slight smirk, hearing his comment.

"You'll have to excuse him, he has an issue with the government," commented Booth, slightly shoving Hodgins. He had a feeling the squint didn't realize that at least two of these agents were above his head. He didn't really need them, and therefore, Cullen, on his bad side. JJ nodded and smiled, taking it in stride. She's had to deal with worse in the press. They fell silent again until they noticed that the one introduced as Gideon, although he dressed more casually than any other FBI agent they had met, pulled out some tape and began taping photos of the victims and crime scenes on the glass wall.

"Oh, goodie, I needed new wallpaper," Angela half-whispered. She really didn't like the idea of having to look at mangled human flesh when she walked into her office. Bones she could handle, at least on most days. Too bad she didn't know this detail before volunteering her office.

"I'm sorry, is it okay that we do this?" asked Hotch, picking up on her comment. He knew that Gideon could get tunnel vision and not think about whom they were working with.

She nodded, "Its fine, I guess. I'll just try not to look at it." She received a few smiles of sympathy; not even these seasoned agents liked having to look at them. A few minutes later the team had finished taping up and laying out all the information they had on the case.

"Can I ask what the point of all of this is?" asked Hodgins, walking over to the group and glancing at all the paperwork.

"It helps us absorb all relevant information about this case to help us get into the mind of the unsub," stated Gideon, studying the photos.

"Unsub?" asked Angela, now next to her boyfriend. Booth had also walked over to the group.

"Unknown subject, the killer," answered Emily.

"We don't know if the unsub is a killer yet," retorted Gideon. "As far as we know, all of this was done to bodies he found."

"Isn't that unlikely?" questioned Hodgins. It was clear as day that it was murder to him. Were they were already trying to cover it up?

"Probably, but until we get Dr. Brennan's results, we can't rule anything out. It would cloud our judgment and potentially throw off our profile," replied Hotch.

"So what do you know?" asked Booth for the others. He could tell that Hodgins in particular was like Brennan and skeptical of the agents' line of work. Plus it gave him an insight on what they thought about the case and a chance to see if it aligned with his opinions.

"Both bodies were found in front of historical landmarks, the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial, one found each of the last two nights. The landmarks are not only historical but linked to the country's politics. There's a good chance this is political. Some kind of protest perhaps?" stated Morgan.

"That's possible. He's definitely trying to make a statement," added Emily.

"And both bodies were found at exactly 9 pm, when the night crew showed up to clean. Indicates a knowledge of the facilities," stated JJ.

"He's also moving at a rapid pace, indicating that his not in full control of his emotions," continued Hotch.

"It's a good thing you have a large lab," commented Gideon, looking at Hodgins and Angela.

"Why's that?" asked Hodgins, even though he had a sickening feeling of that the answer was.

"Because the one thing we know for sure is that he's not going to stop until he's caught," Gideon finished.

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Reid watched with keen interest as Brennan, Zack, and Cam worked on the two bodies. For a normal person, it would have been gruesome to watch, but then again Reid wasn't normal. That and he had seen his share of dead bodies, unfortunately. He jotted down some notes on his pad of paper as they continued their examinations, donning a lab coat and goggles just like them, following protocol.

"No wonder the coroner couldn't figure out what happened to these people," commented Cam as they examined the bodies. She was at one while Brennan and Zack were at the other. "The damage is so extensive it's hard to tell what exactly you're looking at."

"These cuts appear to have occurred while the victim was still alive based on the type of tissue damage. The wounds look to have ragged edges, perhaps a serrated knife was used," stated Zack, glancing up at Brennan for approval. Even though he was no longer her grad student, he still wanted to make sure she agreed with his findings.

"Good observation, what else do you see?" she asked without looking up.

"The left tibula and right humerus are broken. The muscle damage that coincides with the breaks also indicates that the victim was alive when this occurred," he continued, slowly becoming mortified at the level of torture.

"The broken bones on this one appear to be different," commented Cam from the other table. "Dr. Reid, do you think you could assist me for a second?"

"Sure," he replied, setting down his notepad by his bag. He quickly grabbed a set of gloves and joined her at the table. "What do you need me to do?" He didn't notice how Brennan and Zack stopped working, watching him with interest. It's not often that they found someone that wasn't in their field that willing to assist with an autopsy.

"I need to examine the break in the right leg so can you help me lift it?" she instructed, receiving a nod from Reid. He helped her lift the leg so she could examine the break. She pulled back some of the charred flesh, lifting part of the bone. None of this fazed Reid. "That's what I thought. The right femur is snapped in half. It looks like the lower thigh was pulled at a 90 degree angle, with pressure on the upper thigh holding that half of the bone in place."

"The unsub must have immobilized this victim," Reid commented to himself as he studied the break as well.

"I don't know what an unsub is, but what makes you say the victim was immobilized?" Brennan asked, curious to see how he drew that conclusion.

"The way Dr. Saroyan described the break suggests that the unsub, the person that did this, stood on the victim's leg and pulled it up to snap it. Taking into account that the victim was alive when it happened, he would have to have been unconscious or immobilized in order for the unsub to achieve this break because a fully conscious person would fight back, making this almost impossible. Given the break and the extent of the torture, I would guess it's the latter," he replied, glancing up at all three of them when finished. Cam had a small smile on her face. Zack looked bewildered, but impressed, and Brennan nodded in approval.

"I think that's an excellent observation," she stated and looked back at the body in front of her. "But I don't like making conclusions until I have all the facts."

"Of course," Reid replied, honoring her scientific approach to things.

"Sucking up, Spence?" The group of four looked up to see JJ standing at the entrance of the lab, a smile on her face. She had heard the last part of the conversation and was amused at how Reid almost seemed at home. Almost.

"What's up, JJ?" he asked, ignoring her comment. Cam and he set the corpse's leg back down.

"Gideon just wanted me to inform you that they were going to check out the two crime scenes with Agent Booth to see if they can figure out how the bodies were able to be left there. The press just got wind of the story so I'll be holding a conference within the half hour. Call Hotch if you find anything, okay?" she rattled off quickly.

"Will do," he replied.

"Thanks. I'll let you get back to work," she smiled, tucking some of her hair behind her ear and walking away. Reid smiled slightly to himself before looking back at the body.

"Bones, you want to go with us?" asked Booth, suddenly appearing where JJ had just been. Brennan nodded, removing her gloves.

"Good idea. I think these three can handle this. We won't know the final details until we dispose of the flesh anyway," she replied, discarding her gloves and taking off her goggles and lab coat. She was about to leave when she turned back, "Don't forget to have Hodgins collect samples and run a toxscreen to see if Dr. Reid's theory pans out and get Angela the skulls as soon as you're done cleaning the bones." The others nodded.

"Understood," replied Zack and the pair left. Reid noticed Booth had his hand on the small of her back, but chose not to read anything into it.

"Why does he call her Bones?" he asked, looking at the other two.

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	4. Dead, but Not Dead

Author's Note: Again, so sorry for the delay…yeah. Hit a bit of a patch of writer's block on this story and then my beta reader was a little slow on editing for me. (Hope she doesn't read this…love you chibi!) At least she's very thorough and made sure my science from Bones and profile from Criminal Minds sounded accurate.

Bones fans – I'd really appreciate feedback about character depiction! Since it's my first attempt at writing Booth and the squints, I'd love to hear how I'm doing. I may attempt a solo Bones story in the future so comments would be helpful. Thanks!

Thanks for all the great feedback I have gotten so far from both group of readers!

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**Reading the Bones**

Chapter Four: Dead, but not Dead

By Ann Parker

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Brennan hadn't really liked the idea of being separated from Booth when they went to the two locations but she understood why. In their time working together, he knew what type of things she would look for. Since time was of the essence, she would rather trust his opinion of the other scene than the other agents, even though Dr. Reid had impressed her back in the lab. At least the other two agents she was with weren't spouting psychobabble at her. One of them did seem to be placing himself into the shoes of the killer, however, rattling off what it would have taken for the unsub to get the body to this location. The ringing of her phone caused her to stop staring at the steps where she had been wondering the same thing.

"Brennan," she answered.

"Dr. Reid was right, Dr. Brennan. The victims were given a dose of phenotripticol before receiving any of the other injuries," Zack replied. "You know I would have caught that on my own right?" he added.

"Yes Zack," she replied quickly, "anything else?"

"The bugs place the first victim's time of death at around 8 pm two days ago and the second victim's one day later," added Hodgins, stealing the phone from Zack. She could vaguely hear a muffled exclamation in the background from Zack.

"What time were the victims found?" she asked one of the agents with her.

"9 pm," replied Morgan, the one that had been role-playing. She nodded.

"Good work guys," she said into the phone. "How far are we to getting faces?"

"The bones are almost finished being cleaned and then I'll start on giving them facial markers," Zack stated, regaining control of his phone.

"Okay. Let me know," she replied and hung up. "The decay of the bodies places time of death roughly an hour before discovery," she informed the two men. Just then the other three showed up.

"The squints give you anything yet, Bones?" asked Booth as he walked up to her.

"Time of death is 8 pm, an hour before discovery," answered Hotch.

"The victims were drugged before any of their other wounds were sustained. Due to the lack of blood at this site I would say they were more than likely killed somewhere else and then transported here," Brennan added. "We should have faces of the victims shortly."

"Well, let's head back to the lab. We can have Reid look over the schematics of how the bodies were dumped without being seen," stated Gideon. They had all come up with possibilities, but the new timeline changed things. The others nodded and they headed to the Jeffersonian.

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"Dr. Brennan, do you want to check these facial markers before I give them to Angela?" asked Zack as soon as they returned to the lab. Bones nodded, slid her identification through the security system, and headed over to him. She quickly slipped on a pair of gloves and picked up one of the skulls.

"Are those erasers?" asked Emily as they watched her examine the skull. Booth had slid his ID through for them to join the rest on the platform.

"You don't have to be high tech to be scientific," Hodgins replied, smirking at her. She walked over to his desk and lightly slapped him in the arm. "Ow!"

"I didn't say you have to be Jack," she replied. "I just found it interesting."

"I forgot how big of a nerd you are," he teased back. She simply stared at him.

"I'm the nerd? You play with bugs and slime all day," Emily laughed.

"You two know each other?" asked Angela, a hint of jealously in her voice. She had just walked onto the platform to get the skulls and witnessed their interaction.

"Yeah, my parents were close with Ambassador Prentiss and her husband," replied Hodgins, walking over to her. "She's like an annoying older sister," he added, sensing his girlfriend's jealously. He was slightly amused by that fact, but knew better than to mention it.

"These look good Zack," commented Brennan, completely ignoring the on-going conversation. She set them down on a tray and handed it to Angela. "Can you get the faces?"

Angela took the tray and nodded, "When have I ever let you down, sweetie?" Brennan smiled at her as she began to walk back to her lab, but paused and turned around. "Your other two agents are in there," she informed them.

"Thanks," Morgan nodded and she smiled back before walking away. Brennan walked over to one of the tables that had the complete skeleton of one of the victims laid out. Zack was at the table with the other skeleton.

"We should be able to give you the official cause of death shortly," she stated, studying the bones.

"Great," replied Hotch. "We'll give you space to work. Let's get what we have to Reid." The remaining BAU team nodded and left the platform, heading to Angela's office.

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"Like what you see?" Angela asked as she walked back into her lab, startling Reid. He had been studying her painting on the wall. JJ was at the other end of the lab talking on the phone.

"Yeah," he replied with a slight smile. "It's one of the few pieces of art that actually speaks to me." He wasn't sure if that was a good thing since it was an abstract of the human body. He'd probably been at this job too long, even though it had only been a few years. Angela smiled in return as she set down the skulls, not judging his comment. Reid was unsure of what else to say, small talk was not one of his strong points. That was reciting any book he had read and amusing the team with his physics magic. He noticed what she was working on and was intrigued. Not that it was hard to intrigue him. "So how does this work exactly?" he asked as he walked over to where she was scanning in the skulls.

"I scan in all the specs of the skull, including the facial markers indicated by Zack and Bren, and then using my custom program I can give them a face," she replied. Reid nodded, amazed at the technology before him.

"Hey Reid, you think you can help us plot out how the bodies got dumped?" asked Morgan as the rest of his team walked in the room. JJ, who had just hung up her phone, walked over to the group as well.

"Yeah, sure," he replied, turning away from Angela's desk. They walked back over to where they were set up.

"Time of death was 8 pm," added Emily as he studied a map.

"Which means that his killing workshop would have to be close to both locations since he would only have an hour to transport the body, dump it at the site, and leave without being detected," Reid stated. "With the amount of traffic that is always in these areas, I would say that he has to live within 15 minutes of the crime scenes."

"How's it going in here?" asked Hodgins as he walked into the room about fifteen minutes later, although he was pretty much ignored by the agents focusing on the task at hand. He walked over to Angela, who was also busy at work.

"Bored?" she teased, knowing that he had nothing else to work on. There hadn't been any discernable evidence left on the bodies for him to work on besides the insects.

"Just didn't feel comfortable leaving you alone with so many FBI agents, didn't want them brain washing you," he jested back, only to have Angela roll her eyes in response. "Actually, Brennan and Zack should be in here shortly with their results. I wanted to see how they use their supposed science to come up with the killer."

"You know, Booth does something similar and is pretty accurate, you should have a little more faith," she replied as she finished developing the faces.

"Thanks, Angela," replied Booth, walking into the room with the rest of the doctors of the Jeffersonian. "Go ahead Bones."

Brennan walked over to Angela and gave her the specifications about the victims. The rest could see Angela grimace as the details were told to her. Once they were done, Angela turned on her holographic display and Brennan began. "First victim was a Caucasian male, approximately 5'10", and between 20 – 25 years old. No underlying physical ailments. The second victim was also a Caucasian male, approximately 6'1", and also between 20 – 25 years old. There were also no underlying physical ailments." Angela put of digital projections of the bodies.

"Wow," whispered JJ as the group walked over to the high-tech machine. "This is enough to make Garcia jealous."

"Who's Garcia?" asked Zack.

"Our computer analyst back at Quantico," answered Morgan.

"Both victims were injected with a large dose of phenotripticol," Brennan continued.

"What's that?" asked Emily.

"It's a drug used to subdue patients during a psychotic episode. In large doses like the victims received, it causes a state of paralysis, rendering the person immobile although they are completely conscious. Basically, dead but not dead," replied Reid. He didn't notice the looks from the scientists in the room. Some shocked, others amused, that he knew that information.

"Oh God," muttered Angela. "So they were alive when all that was done to them?" This was quickly becoming the most disturbing case they had seen in a while.

"Yes," replied Brennan, continuing. "The victims were injected with the drug and then each had bones broken, in the arm and the in the leg. The first victim had his left tibula and right humerus broken; the second had his right femur and both the ulna and radius in the left arm broken." Angela let the machine run through a simulation of the bone breaks. Just about everyone winced when the femur was broken on the second victim. "The victims then received a variety of cuts, with what appears to be a serrated knife, around the body."

"There were several on the limbs, but also across the torso, all of varying depth. None were deep enough to cause death on their own, but the blood loss was significant. However, not enough to kill them, at least not promptly," added Cam since she was the expert on flesh as Angela added that to the simulation.

"Before the blood loss killed them, they were then lit on fire. By this point they probably would have pasted out from the pain. And lastly, a single gunshot wound to the head. That would be my official cause of the death," Brennan finished. The simulation ran its course. The BAU team exchanged looks; seeing the recreation put a new spin on how they usually ran through the death of their victims. It made it all the more real and more disturbing.

"The bullets were recovered. They appear to be from a small handgun," added Zack. He lifted a bag with the bullets and handed them to Booth.

"These are from a M9 pistol. The Army uses those," Booth commented after studying them for a minute. He didn't really like there this might be heading.

"Gives us a connection to the military," stated Hotch.

"Rendering his victims powerless and then torturing them is key to his methodology. Then he displays them around the capital," commented Morgan, receiving nods from his team.

"And he appears to be in control, almost methodical, and has a set order of procedures, organized. He knows what he wants to do to the victims and the precise order, making the torture as long and as painful as possible. Yet he moves onto the next victim at a rapid pace, almost as if he needs the body count to be high as part of his message," added Emily.

"It's a start, but we still need more," stated Gideon.

"I've got their faces," stated Angela. They turned back to the holographic display as she loaded the first victim's image, going through the stages of the skeleton, adding the muscle, and then the actual face.

"How accurate is this?" asked Hotch as they studied the 3D image of a Caucasian male with dark brown hair and brown eyes.

"There's a small degree of artistic interpretation, but Angela has never steered us in the wrong direction," stated Brennan, sending her friend a slight smile.

Gideon nodded, impressed. Angela then put up the image of the second victim, who had blond hair and blue eyes. "Get these to Garcia, Morgan. They have faces now, let's get them names."

"Do you have digital files of these that I can send?" Morgan asked Angela. She nodded as they walked back to her computer.

"Why not just run it through the system we have? We have access to the FBI database," questioned Hodgins.

"Garcia has access to more than just the FBI database. If there is a photo or video of you that was made public, no matter how small, she can find it and then your entire life story," answered Emily.

"So Big Brother," replied Hodgins with a smirk. He should have known.

"Actually, Garcia would be able to do that with or without government access. Just be glad she works for us," added Reid.

"I was beginning to thing you forgot about me." Garcia's cheery, flirtatious voice interrupted them. Morgan had put her on speakerphone.

"Oh you know I'd never forget my baby girl," Morgan teased back. Garcia giggled.

"What do you need, peaches?" she asked. The Jeffersonian group exchanged looks of amusement as they continued. Well, Booth, Cam, Angela, and Hodgins did. Zack and Brennan were a little confused.

"I'm sending you digital projections of what the victims should have looked like," he replied as Angela clicked 'send' on her computer.

"And you need their identities and entire history, on it. Want what they last ate too?" she coyly replied, causing the BAU team to grin. She always brightened their usually dark investigations.

"Check and see if they have any link to politics or the military," added Reid.

"Oh, well, hello my dear Reid. Morgan, you didn't tell me I was on speakerphone. Now what is that hottie Agent Booth going to think of me?" she scolded. JJ and Emily chuckled slightly as Booth now looked a little flustered yet still managed a smirk. Figures that in her boredom she looked up with whom they were working.

"Sorry, gorgeous. Did you get the files?" asked Morgan.

"Just got them. I'm starting the search as we speak," she replied.

"Is there anything we can do until that?" asked Cam.

"No. Until we have that information and have a full grasp on the victimology our profile is incomplete," answered Hotch.

"Well then, I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm starving," stated Booth with a grin, getting over his slight embarrassment a moment earlier.

"Wong Fu's?" asked Hodgins. Booth nodded.

"What do you say?" he asked Hotch and Gideon, making sure to not step on his superiors' toes. Hotch looked at Gideon who shrugged.

"Sounds good," replied Hotch, acknowledging that his team needed food as well.

"You're going to Wong Fu's?" questioned Garcia, still on the phone because Morgan forgot to hang up. "That's just not fair. Derek Morgan, I demand that you bring me back something. Syd knows that I like."

"You find that information and I'll take you there myself," Morgan replied.

"Oh, don't try to challenge me because you know you'll just lose," Garcia teased back.

"Okay, mama, call me when you've got something." Morgan hung up and looked back up at the rest. "So, what's Wong Fu's?"

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	5. Food and Bonding

Author's Note: Thanks for all the great reviews. They mean the world to me. Okay, time for the fun chapter. Bones fans – the profile on Hodgins in here is my interpretation of Jack and I mean it in the nicest of ways so please don't get angry. He's personally one of my favorite characters on the show. It was just included to prove a point about the BAU team, particularly Gideon. Oh, and cookies go to those that can tell me where the two jokes below are from. Enjoy!

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**Reading the Bones**

Chapter Five: Food and Bonding

By Ann Parker

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The group pulled up to a small Chinese restaurant and climbed out of their three SUVs. As they climbed out, everyone could hear Morgan teasing Reid.

"JJ, do you have a rubber band with you this time?" he asked only to get a bunch of laughter from the group of profilers.

"Shut up Morgan," Reid glared, even though he was smiling. It _was_ a pretty funny meal in New York when he thought about it. He probably had left more food on the floor than he had managed to eat before they got called to another crime scene.

"So what makes this place so special?" asked JJ as they entered. Booth was in the lead and a tall African-American man in a plaid shirt gestured to a back room. As they were on their way he had called to warn that it was going to be a much larger group.

"The food is great, particularly if you don't order," answered Zack.

"Wait, what? Say that again," asked Morgan as they reached their table and sat down. Whether planned or not, the groups separated into their own semi circles except for that Reid and Zack sat next to each other on one end and Booth and Hotch on the other.

"You don't order, Syd just brings you the food," added Angela.

"He knows what you want better than you do," finished Booth. "Just trust us." Before anyone else had a chance to comment, the man from behind the bar and one of his waitresses came in with a few trays of food and drinks.

"Hey Syd," Booth greeted. "Had to shove us in the back?"

"I didn't want you guys flashing dead bodies at the rest of my customers," Syd replied as he finished passing out drinks.

"Hey, we only did that once," countered Hodgins. Syd shook his head as he handed out food to the squints and Booth.

"That was enough," he stated and then turned to the others. Garcia had told him a lot about them. "Agent Hotchner?" he gestured to Hotch, making sure he had it right. Hotch nodded and Syd handed him his food. He then proceeded around the table and handed them their food, receiving grins and surprised looks along the way. How _does_ he know what they want? That was until he reached Reid, although the food was correct.

"Um…" Reid started, raising his hand, but Syd stopped him by handing him a fork before he could say anything else. "Thanks." Syd smiled as the rest of the profilers and even some of the Jeffersonian group laughed at his expense.

"He really is good," commented Hotch.

"Garcia must have told him," Reid muttered, although the annoyance didn't reach his eyes. At least he'd actually get to eat all his food this time.

"This is amazing," commented JJ. "How do you do it?" she asked Syd. He simply winked and left, leaving it a mystery. The table fell silent for a minute as they all began to eat. Or until Brennan finally asked the question that had been bothering her for a while.

"So how exactly does this profiling work? Isn't it all guess work?" she asked as she took a bite of her lo mein.

"Bones!" exclaimed Booth, slightly annoyed.

"What? You said I could ask!" she replied.

"You could have used a little tact," he stated, shaking his head.

"No, it's okay," replied Gideon with a slight smile. "She's a pure scientist and what we do isn't. Nothing that involves understanding the human psyche, human emotion, really is."

"We use precedent from serial killers and other offenders that we've studied and apply that knowledge to the study of human behavior and psychology to develop a profile of the unsub we are looking for. It's not hard science, but it's very effective," added Reid.

"So you can tell what a person is like just by looking at them?" asked Hodgins. The group nodded.

"Basically, although it's not always perfect," replied Emily.

"Okay," replied Hodgins, crossing his arms. "Tell me about myself." Booth shook his head; he should have seen that coming. The profilers looked at Gideon, letting him make the decision on whether or not to play this game. Gideon studied Hodgins for a second and then smiled.

"You're incredibly well educated, partly because you come from a wealthy family, although you usually never try to flaunt that detail. In fact, you try to hide it at all costs. You chose to study entomology because insects, spores, and dirt can't lie and mislead you, a behavior you probably witnessed in your family. Lies and manipulation are another reason why you don't trust the government and why you grab on to every conspiracy theory there is, though I bet in your mind you know that majority of those are lies as well. You're dedicated to your job and your friends, but sometimes your convictions can get in the way of that," Gideon replied. Everyone at the other end of the table sat there for a second, stunned. All of that fit Dr. Jack Hodgins to a tee. After a second, Hodgins opened his mouth to argue against it, not ready to give in, but Gideon continued. "Oh and even though you talk a big game about being with women, you are actually feel a little awkward around them sometimes, which is why are you incredibly grateful that Miss Montengero here seems to understand that and cares for you in return."

Angela laughed after that. "Well, I think that pretty much sums you up," she teased. Hodgins rolled his eyes, defeated.

"Quite impressive," added Zack.

Brennan nodded, "I agree." There was a chance that they could have looked up most of that information before meeting them, but she decided to let it be. For now. "So is that why you needed the exact cause of death of these victims?"

"Yes," Hotch replied. "In order to get an idea of what is going on in the head of our unsub, we need to know what he does to the victims and everything about who they were or why they were chosen. Without victimology, we can't truly understand what drives the unsub, why they do what they do."

Brennan nodded. When she thought about it, it was basically the same as Booth listening to his gut. She was starting could believe that, even though she still maintained that he could just read body language and was not actually getting a feeling in his abdomen. Yet if she was willing to give that a try, then she supposed that she was willing to give the profilers a try. "Booth, don't you do something similar?"

Booth smiled, "Sorta. I can get a good feeling about whether or not we have the right guy, but I don't think I'm at their level."

"Don't sell yourself short," countered Morgan. "All FBI agents have the basic profiling skills; we are just specialists in it." Booth smiled slightly, taking the complement. The group fell silent again, digging into their food.

After a few minutes, Booth decided it was quickly turning into an awkward silence. He knew the squints some times have a hard time thinking of anything to talk about that's not work related. Or in Bones' case, she liked to pick inconvenient timing for topics. With that in mind, he decided to attempt to break the uncomfortable mood developing. "So my friend in Reno walks into this bar that has a 'hiring' sign posted in the window. He walks up to the owner and tells him he's here for the job. The owner looks at him and tells him he's completely wrong for the job. They're looking for a bodyguard for the bar because they have around seven fights a night. But my friend argues, saying that even though he's small he's really tough. The owner says, 'okay, give me an example of how tough you are.' So he tells him about how he was in a rodeo the previous weekend and a bull bucked him, ripping his left hand clean off. But he grabbed his hand and sewed it on himself backstage and went out in the fourth goal and won the rodeo. The owner paused and then said, 'wow, that is tough. You've got the job.' In his excitement my friend offered two thumbs up and said 'Alright!'" He held out his two hands to gesture it, except the left hand was actually pointing down.

The group slightly laughed. "That has got to be one of the sadist jokes I've ever heard," teased Morgan with a grin. They didn't notice that it seemed to take Zack and Reid a second to get the joke. Brennan looked completely lost.

"I don't know what that means," Brennan replied and Booth just shook his head.

"He sewed his hand on upside down," he replied.

Brennan nodded, "oh. Well considering the unlikelihood of him being actually able to do that…"

"Honey, just let it go," stated Angela, patting her friend on the shoulder. The group exchanged smiles. They continued to eat and the conversation became a little more lighthearted. After a few minutes, Zack decided to take this opportunity to try and get to know the man sitting next to him. They appeared to be quite similar even though they studied different things.

"So are you more of an applied or a theoretical physicist?" he asked Reid, remembering what he had degrees in. Reid looked up at him from his food and then back down, thinking.

"Probably more theoretical, why?" he replied.

Zack shrugged, "I was just curious." Reid nodded and smiled. "Hey, you know what they say right? Applied physicists are from Venus and…"

"And theoretical physicists wonder why it rotates in the opposite direction," Reid finished, grinning. The pair chuckled slightly at the joke, as did Brennan. The rest exchanged glances. Leaving their two geniuses together might be dangerous.

"Wait a minute, Bones," injected Booth, looking at her. "You found that funny?"

"What?" she replied, confused. "It's an amusing way to look at how people in the same field approach the subject differently." Booth sighed.

"Well, it looks like I got here just in time." A cheery voice came from the doorway. They all looked up, Morgan the first to react.

"Mama? What are you doing here?" he asked as the woman, whom the squints figured out to be Garcia, walked over to him and sat down between him and JJ.

"What? I can't be let out of my dungeon once and a while?" she teased as Syd brought her food. "I didn't think you'd remember to bring me food since you'd be off chasing bad guys when you're finished eating," she added.

"Do you have anything for us?" asked Hotch.

"Is that doubt I hear in our leader's voice? Of course I have what you need," she replied and opened her bag. She handed them two files and they passed them out so that Reid, JJ and Morgan were looking at one and Emily, Gideon, and Hotch were looking at the other with Booth looking over their shoulders. "You, as always, were right Reid. They both were in the military, same unit actually. Your victims were Corporal James Righten and Private First Class Kirk Thomlinson. They just came back from Iraq one month ago."

"Anything alarming in their service records?" asked Morgan as he studied the file on Thomlinson.

"Nope. Both seemed to be all in all good soldiers, good men. Their addresses are in there. Thomlinson was married and his wife had filed a missing persons report. Righten was single and there was nothing reported about him," Garcia replied.

"Great work, Garcia," replied Hotch, closing the folder. Good thing she showed up towards the end of the meal, they actually got to eat before running off.

"I know," Garcia smirked, taking a bite of her dumpling.

"Okay, Hotch and JJ, why don't you visit their commanding officer, see if there is anything that's not in their file," Gideon stated. The pair nodded. "Morgan, Emily, and Reid take Thomlinson. I'll go check out Righten's place. Booth, you want to come with me?"

"Absolutely," replied Booth. The agents, along with Brennan, stood up to head out.

"How are we supposed to get back to the lab?" asked Angela.

"I'll give you a ride in Ester," replied Garcia. "It'll be a tight fit, but I think we'll manage."

"Whose Ester?" asked Zack.

"Her convertible," replied Reid as they were heading out. "And before she says it, you are to feel honored that she's allowing you to touch it." He smiled at Garcia.

"Good boy," she replied. "Now go and catch this sicko."

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	6. Pieces of the Puzzle

Author's note: I don't really have a good excuse for the delay on this, but I'm really sorry. I PROMISE I won't leave you hanging for too long and will have chapter seven up pretty soon. Hope you enjoy this next installment!

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**Reading the Bones**

Chapter Six: Pieces of the Puzzle

By Ann Parker

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"At this time there is nothing to lead the bureau to believe that the two bodies found at the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument are connected. There is also nothing to suggest foul play. More information will be released when we are finished conducting our investigation. Thank you." JJ walked away from the podium even though the reporters kept asking questions. The news report switched back to the local news anchor for the 12 o'clock news.

A fist slammed down on a dining room table in a small, virtually bare apartment on 14th Street, a mere five minutes from downtown DC and all its attractions. "I'll show you unconnected. My message will be received." This is what happens when things are left up to simple-minded infidels.

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"I can't believe this," Mrs. Amy Thomlinson sobbed, hugging herself. Emily guided the distraught woman to the worn, blue couch in the couple's small, but cozy, living room, gently placing an arm around her.

"We are terribly sorry," she offered in a composed, yet sympathetic voice. She needed to calm her down; they still had questions to ask. Morgan and Reid had followed them into the room, electing to stand on the opposite end of the room, a coffee table between them.

"Are you sure its him?" She picked up a photo of the couple off the coffee table. It was of their wedding day, just barely over a year ago. Just before Kirk had been sent to Iraq. The slight spring breeze blowing her loose curls in the wind, the scent of her bouquet of lilacs, his gentle kiss – all were a distant memory now.

"Yes, ma'am, I'm afraid we are," replied Morgan. The photos of Kirk had been a match to Angela's image and Garcia was running a DNA sample through the military's database for extra confirmation. However, because DNA matches can take up to 48 hours – time they didn't have, they were forced to work off of the photographic match.

"But why? Why would someone want to kill him?" she pleaded, looking up at Morgan and Reid.

Reid stuffed his hands in his pockets. He hated talking to the victims' families, he always felt uncomfortable. He cleared his throat slightly before speaking, "That's what we're hoping to understand, ma'am. Can you think of anyone that might have a problem with your husband?"

Amy looked down at the photo again, her fingers gently caressing Kirk's face, trying to be strong. "Nothing comes to mind. He got along with everyone; his unit was like family. You said there was another victim?"

Emily nodded, "Yes. Corporal James Righten."

"Oh god. Is someone trying to target his unit?" Amy asked, panic and fear in her eyes.

Morgan nodded, "It's very possible ma'am. Can you think of anyone that would have a problem with your husband's unit? Did someone or something change while they were overseas?"

Amy looked up at Morgan and sighed. "They all changed, Agent Morgan. Some of the things they saw…" She stopped for a moment, her voice caught in her throat. "Kirk did say something about Mark, though."

The three agents exchanged a quick glance. "Mark?" asked Reid.

Amy stood up and shakily walked over to the entertainment unit behind Reid and Morgan. She picked up a large picture frame containing the unit's official photograph and handed it to Morgan. He quickly noticed all of them looked serious, but that they appeared rather at ease with each other. Except for the man she pointed out to him. He seemed very uncomfortable, almost on guard. "Private Mark Easton. He's the unit's medic. Kirk said something one night about Mark wanting out of the army and that he had been acting strange. Well, stranger than normal."

Emily stood up and joined them. "What do you mean?"

Amy sighed, "Well, Mark was always distant. He didn't really try to connect with the other guys that much. But lately, since they got back, Kirk said he wouldn't even talk to them. Almost as if he resented them for some reason."

Morgan handed her back the photo, "Thank you Mrs. Thomlinson. You've been very helpful. And we promise, we'll catch the person that did this." He placed a hand on her shoulder and squeezed slightly, determination clearly written on his face.

Amy nodded, wiping a few tears that escaped. "Thank you."

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"Do you think our unsub saw my press conference?" asked JJ as Hotch and her made their way to the unit's commanding officer, Command Sergeant David Johnson. "I hope my lie was convincing enough," she added.

"It was fine JJ and I certainly hope he did," replied Hotch. "We need him to tell us what his message is and he'll make sure its clear the next time." As much as they didn't want there to be a next time, they all knew they weren't going to stop him before there was a third victim. They didn't have enough to go on yet.

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"What are you doing, sitting over here pouting?" asked Angela. She had strolled over to Hodgins' desk, her heals making slight clanking noises on the glass platform, to see him half studying some random sample. He simply made some sort of grunting noise as he stared aimlessly into the microscope. She wasn't even sure what he was looking at; he had nothing to work on. "Oh, come on it wasn't that bad. You know he just added the last part to get under your skin because you questioned their methods."

Hodgins spun in his chair, pushing away from his microscope and desk, and looked up at her. "But how could I not question it? It's not based on any real science. They could say whatever they want and there would be no real way to refute it!"

"Okay, down tiger," Angela replied. "These are not some random shrinks. They are the top of their field and are requested across the country to help apprehend sickos like the one we're dealing with. Why don't you wait until this case is over to past your judgment on what they do?"

Hodgins nodded slightly, calming down. She always had that effect on him. Perhaps that was one of the reasons he loved her. "Wait…how do you know that they're requested across the country?" All he knew was that they were based in Quantico. Okay, he knew they traveled around the country because he was a friend of Emily's. But, how did she know?

Angela simply shrugged, "So I googled them, it's not that big of a deal."

Hodgins opened his mouth to reply with some smart-aleck comment when Zack appeared, almost out of nowhere. Although it might have just seemed that way because Hodgins tended to lose focus on things around him when Angela was near. "Booth was right."

"Right about what, Zack?" he asked, turning to younger man.

"I compared the bullets we recovered and to M9 bullets since Booth said they looked like them. He was right. Only the Army has that type of gun issued to them," Zack replied.

"So the killer is in the military?" asked Angela. Booth was really not going to like that news. Very few things angered Booth more than knowing a fellow serviceman was taking innocent lives, let alone his members of his own unit. Zack nodded. "You better call Brennan."

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"Well, it doesn't look like Righten lived alone," commented Gideon as the group climbed out of Booth's SUV. He gestured to the two cars in the driveway of the small one-story house, just on the skirts of the DC area.

"And yet he wasn't reported missing," added Booth as the three made their way to the front door. Gideon nodded at Booth when they reached to door after climbing a few stairs onto the porch and Booth knocked. "FBI, open up."

Brennan peered into the dirty bay window to the right of the door. It looked like hadn't been cleaned in years with layer upon layer of dust covering the panes. It was a miracle that she could see through that and notice something move slightly inside. "There's someone in there," she stated, looking back at the two agents.

Booth pounded on the door this time. "FBI, open up or we're coming in!" They all heard a muffled crashing sound – like a lamp hitting a carpeted floor – and Brennan looked back in the window to see the figure run to the back.

"He's going out back!" she yelled and started down the stairs and around the house.

"Bones!" Booth yelled after her as he followed. Gideon circled the other direction around to the back. "Damn it," he muttered to himself. It was moments like this when he hated taking her with him. She was always so absent of fear or so intent on catching the perpetrator (some days he didn't know which) that she usually never realized or cared that she could be running into something dangerous. "Bones, you gotta quit doing that!" he ordered when he caught up to her in the back yard. No one was visible except Gideon. Brennan just ignored him.

"Are you sure you saw him head this direction, Dr. Brennan?" Gideon asked as they looked around the messy yard. There was an old, mangled chain-linked fence in one corner that appeared to be the former separation of the yard to one of the neighbors until a new wooden one was put in its place. More than likely by said neighbors. In the other corner was a rusty tool shed. The grass looked like it hadn't been cut for months and it was overrun with weeds. The house was beginning to look more like it was abandoned than a place a US soldier, built on order and discipline, lived in.

"Yes," Brennan replied. "I'm positive I saw him run towards the back of the house." Where in the world did that man go? She eyed the tool shed and made her way over there. She reached for the handle.

"Bones, don't," ordered Booth, but it was too late. She had already slid the door open only to have an arm wrap around her neck and have a gun pointed at her head.

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	7. Putting it Together

**Reading the Bones**

Chapter Seven: Putting it Together

By Ann Parker

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"Back off, man, or I'll shoot the chick!" The man Brennan had seen in the house seconds earlier emerged out of the rusty tool shed using her as a shield by wrapping an arm around her neck and holding her close. Gideon immediately noted his appearance – disheveled, dirty, very thin, and jumpy. He also noted something he'd missed when they had gone to the crime scenes earlier in the day. Dr. Brennan was unarmed. Which meant the weapon belonged to this man. Clearly he had planned this move, but why?

"Now why would you want to do that? She hasn't done anything to you," Gideon stated in a calm voice. He didn't notice Booth sending him a sidewards glance.

"Yeah, and besides, do you really want me to put a bullet through your skull? Because I don't, I'm not in the mood to fill out paperwork about why I had to shoot you. Let her go." Booth's voice was far more forceful and agitated. How did she always manage to get herself into trouble like this? He didn't know how many more days like this his heart, not to mention his blood pressure, could handle. Brennan's phone chose that moment to ring.

-------------------------------------------

"Dr. Brennan isn't answering her phone. Why wouldn't she answer her phone?" asked Zack as he redialed again and paced in front of Hodgins and Angela.

"Whoa, Zack, calm down. She's probably just busy," answered Hodgins. He knew why the young man was frantic. Everyone, except for probably Brennan, could see the small crush he had on her.

"But even when she's busy she answers the phone," he stated. "Something must be wrong."

-------------------------------------------

"Shut up! Just shut up both of you and back away!" the man yelled, faintly waving the gun at them. When he did so Gideon noticed the track marks down the man's arm and smiled just barely to himself. That explains it. "And make that damn phone stop ringing!"

"It's kind of hard to do that when I'm being held hostage," Brennan argued back, annoyed that this fool had grabbed her. If he would just loosen his grip a little, she'd be fine.

"Shut up!" He pointed the gun back at the side of her head. She could see just enough of it out of the corner of her eye to know it was .38 caliber handgun.

"Hey, buddy, calm down," Booth yelled.

"Listen, we're not here about your drugs. We really could care less. We're here about James," Gideon stated, realizing that he needed to make his move now before things escalated further. The man's eyes darted to him.

"What about James?" he asked, his voice not nearly as angry as it was a second ago. It almost sounded scared.

"He's dead," answered Booth.

"What?" the man asked, fear now clearly present in his voice. His grip around Brennan weakened and he moved the gun away from her head, letting it point to the sky instead. It was all she needed. She elbowed him in the stomach and kicked him in the shin, pulling the gun out of his hand, all in one swift motion. He quickly fell on the ground and Booth and Gideon were on him. Booth moved the man's arms behind his body to cuff him and that's when he began to panic again. "I thought you didn't care about the drugs?"

"I care about you assaulting my partner, you idiot. That just earned you a ride to the Hoover building," Booth stated, pulling him up off the ground. "Bones, give Gideon the gun."

"Why? I disarmed him, I think I can hold on it, Booth," she argued.

"Bones, please," Booth glared at her. Neither noticed the small smirk on Gideon's face at this interaction. They clearly had an interesting relationship.

Brennan looked at Booth for second, somewhat surprised that he was almost begging her. "Fine," she replied, shrugging. She handed Gideon the gun and he made sure to secure it. The group began to walk back to the front of the house as a small chuckle escaped Gideon's lips.

"What?" asked Booth.

"I was going to ask you why she wasn't carrying a firearm out in the field, but I think she answered the question for me. Nice moves back there, Dr. Brennan," Gideon replied with a smile.

Brennan smiled in return, "Thank you. Although I still maintain that should have a gun, but Booth won't let me."

"That's because you shot a suspect with no warning. We've been over this before," Booth replied. "You still want to search the house?" Gideon nodded and they headed up the front stairs again, the handcuffed man in tow.

Brennan's phone rang again before she could respond to Booth's comment. "Brennan."

"Are you okay, Dr. Brennan? Why weren't you answering your phone?" Zack rambled. Booth opened the front door – it had been unlocked the whole time – and the group made their way inside.

"I'm fine, Zack. Why did you call?" she asked, purposely avoiding the second question. They began to look around. The place was filthy, except for the one bedroom Gideon was looking at. It appeared to be Righten's bedroom.

"Booth was right, the bullets were from an M9, which is only issued to the Army. The killer has to be in the military," Zack answered.

"Great work, Zack," she replied. "Anything else?"

"No. Why didn't you answer your phone earlier?" he tried again.

"Bye Zack," she stated, hanging up before he could argue.

-------------------------------------------

"This is…unbelievable," Command Sergeant David Johnson managed to get out. It wasn't often that the seasoned military man was at a loss for words. He was even used to hearing about losing people under his command, but never like this. Not in a matter of just days. Not in such a brutal way. And definitely not on their home base.

"Can you think of anyone that had a problem with either of them?" Hotch asked, trying to get Johnson to regain his focus. The slightly older man blinked a little and looked back at him. Hotch could see him pull his strong willed, determined face back on. The one that commanding officers in the military were supposed to have. Some team leaders in the FBI too.

"No, I can't say that I do. Their unit is one of the more polished, well-organized units in my command. Everyone knows what they need to do and they do it. I never had to discipline any of them," Johnson replied. "However, if there minor internal conflicts going on, I wouldn't know. I oversee 12 other unit in the DC area alone. I don't have time to baby-sit. They knew to take care of that themselves. Involving me would only make it worse for all of them." He smiled softly at that as did Hotch and JJ.

"Do you think we could see copies of the unit's service records? Perhaps talk to the rest of the unit?" JJ asked. She knew Garcia could look up the rest of the records, but it would be better if he knew they were doing that.

"Why? You don't think one of their own did this to them, do you?" Johnson questioned. Hotch and JJ exchanged a quick glance.

"I'll be honest with you, sir," Hotch replied, "It's a possibility that needs to be considered. Giving us that information would allow us to rule it out." Or prove it, but he knew better than to say that.

"Well, I suppose I could do that then. I want you to catch the bastard that did this," Johnson stated. "I'll have one of my men pull it together for you."

JJ smiled, "Thank you." That went over better than she thought. Maybe he was still in too much shock to argue further, something they'd easily take to their advantage. If they didn't, bodies could start to pile up pretty fast.

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"Great, we'll see you soon." Morgan hung up his phone as he followed Emily and Reid back into the Jeffersonian. "JJ and Hotch got the records from their commanding officer. We can check them out once we put the profile together. They should be back soon."

"Should I call Gideon and see when he's getting back?" asked Reid.

"Your killer is in the Army," stated Hodgins from the platform, gaining their attention.

"How do you know?" asked Emily. Cam came down the stairs and slid her badge to let them up. "Thanks."

Cam nodded. "Go ahead and tell them, get your smugness out of the way," she stated, looking at Hodgins.

"Why does he get to tell? I'm the one that figured it out," countered Zack.

"Uh, can someone just tell us how you know he's in the military?" asked Morgan.

"I compared the bullets found in the victims' skulls to bullets fired from an M9 like Booth suggested and they were a match," stated Zack before Hodgins could say anything.

"And only the Army uses M9," added Hodgins, crossing his arms with a smile.

Reid nodded, "Makes sense. This level of torture usually coincides with having a personal relationship with the victims. Serving in the same unit would certainly be a close relationship."

"So, so far we've been able to tell you the victims' identities, how they died, including the model of the weapon, and all you can tell us is that the killer knew the victims?" asked Hodgins with a hint of hostility.

Emily raised an eyebrow and smiled. "Gideon really got under your skin with that profile, didn't he Jack?"

Hodgins scoffed and rolled his eyes, "No." This only causes the rest of the squints to laugh. 

"Oh, please, you've been steaming ever since we got back," countered Angela. "Let it go and let them do their job."

"Yes, let's do that." The group turned to see Brennan and Gideon coming up the stairs.

"Where's Booth?" asked Zack. "And are you going to tell me why you weren't answering your phone earlier now?"

Brennan tucked some hair behind her ear. "Booth is booking James Righten's younger brother for assault," she answered calmly. Surprise was present on all of their faces.

"Who'd he assault?" asked Reid.

She shrugged, "Me."

"What?" asked Cam, shocked.

"It wasn't that big of a deal. He held a gun to my head – that's why I didn't answer my phone, Zack – He thought we were after his stash of heroin, which Agent Gideon figured out and then I disarmed him." She turned to Gideon, "How did you know that was why he grabbed me?" She was completely oblivious to the stunned expressions on everyone else's faces.

"His appearance and the fact that he was jumpy, twitchy," Gideon replied and she nodded. "That and he had track marks on his arm."

Brennan smiled, "Ah, I should have caught that."

"Um, sweetie, are you okay?" asked Angela, pulling the pair back to the rest.

"I'm fine. Did you tell them about the bullets?" she replied. Zack nodded. "Good."

"Hotch and JJ are on their way back, Gideon," stated Reid.

Gideon nodded, "Let's start pulling together a profile." The BAU team headed back to Angela's office, fully aware that the rest were following them. Once they reached the office, the team assembled around the table they were stationed at. The Jeffersonian group stood over by Angela's desk. "What do we have so far?"

"The unsub is in the Army or has access to an M9 firearm. Both victims belonged to the same unit. The level of torture suggests a close relationship with the victims, possibly a member of the same unit," stated Emily.

"Thomlinson, the first victim, was a newlywed. Never had any problems with his superiors, fellow soldiers, or family. Worked hard; loved his wife. All in all, an average, good guy," added Morgan.

"Although he had a drug addicted little brother, Righten also seemed to be a straight arrow. His room was clean and organized and he loved the Army. He was trying to help his little brother get clean, even though he was failing," Gideon stated. "That only clear link why they were both chosen is their unit." The squints and Brennan continued to watch quietly as they went through this.

"The torture was organized, methodical. There is a reason, a message behind why he cuts them, breaks bones, lights them on fire, and shoots them. The choice of drug, phenotripticol, causes paralysis, leaving the victims unable to cry for help or fight back. Yet because it's not a commonly known drug except in the medical profession, the drug choice also suggests exposure to either a mental health facility or someone mentally ill. It could possibly be through medical training," Reid stated. As he was talking Hotch, JJ, and Booth all silently walked in, Hotch setting down a file box on the table.

The group expected Hotch to want a recap, but he apparently had heard enough of the profile to allow it to continue. In fact, he picked up where they left off. "He's dumping the bodies at national landmarks because he wants the bodies to be seen; he wants to show off what he's done. He may also be trying to target the government with his message."

Gideon sighed, "We're still missing that part. What is his message? What is he torturing and killing these men? Why dump the bodies at these particular sites?"

"Isn't being a sick freak enough of an answer?" asked Hodgins. Everyone turned and looked at him. "What? I'm just saying." Angela slightly smacked him in the arm and Emily shook her head before turning back to her team.

"How do you find out the 'why'?" asked Zack.

"Hopefully, he'll tell us," answered Hotch. "JJ's press conference denying any foul play or that the bodies are even connected has been airing constantly. He would be looking to see if his message had gotten out. Her conference will anger him and force him to make his reasons clear."

"How exactly?" asked Angela, not liking where this was going.

"Unfortunately, with the next victim," answered Morgan.

"So you're just going to stand here and wait for another body?" asked Brennan, angered by this.

"They don't really have a choice, Bones," stated Booth, trying to be sensitive to both sides. He knew she hated it when they got new victims. She hated victims being trivialized and treated like pieces of a puzzle. Even if that's not what they were trying to do, that's how it was coming across.

"There is always a choice, Booth," she argued back, her voice at an eerily monotone level.

"Dr. Brennan," started Reid, getting her attention. "With this level of torture, would you agree that the unsub would have to spend a great deal of time with the victim before disposing of the body?"

Brennan stared at him. "Yes," she replied, annoyed. She knew exactly where he was going with this, but she didn't like it.

"So more than likely the next victim has already been taken by him. It's unfortunate that we don't know enough be able to save this victim, but hopefully we'll be able to gain enough information to stop him before he reaches victim number four," Reid finished.

Brennan nodded and opened her mouth to reply when JJ's cell phone rang.

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	8. Symbolism

**Reading the Bones**

Chapter Eight: Symbolism

By Ann Parker

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"Jareau. Already? Where? Thank you." Everyone watched as JJ hung up her phone and turned to Hotch and Gideon. "We've got our third victim."

"Where?" asked Gideon.

"The Three Servicemen statue of the Vietnam Memorial," JJ replied. The group silently nodded and began to head out the door.

-------------------------------------------

"The message clear enough now?" asked Brennan when they arrived on scene. Booth shot her a look, but she ignored him. "Let's get to work," she commented to Zack and Cam. The three began to take photos of the scene and examine the body…parts. The left leg had been severed below the knee and the right arm just below the elbow. Both limbs were tossed along side the charred body like garbage being tossed on the side of the road.

"He moved up his timeline so how did he manage to do all this and not be seen?" asked Morgan. The unsub had dumped the body, all of it, in front of the statue. And scribbled in blood 'The infidels must pay for their sins' on the cement in front of it. A copy of the Koran was placed neatly in front of the message. It was all starting to become clear.

"Looks like they were doing some construction in the area so it was blocked off from visitors. None of the construction workers saw anything, but that's because most were getting ready to leave, if they hadn't already," stated JJ as she rejoined the group. She had been talking with the officers that had first arrived on scene.

"The unsub obviously has knowledge of the facilities then," stated Emily.

"Not necessarily," countered Reid, studying the message on the ground. "The hours of these places are easily accessible on the internet and if he lives in the area, which based off the timeline he'd have to, he would know about the construction. Everybody knows construction crews work 9 – 5 so he would know he'd have this window of opportunity."

"Then what's the significance of the time from the last two victims?" asked Hotch.

Gideon smiled ever so faintly, the last piece of the puzzle finally coming together in his head. "Evening prayers," he replied.

Reid nodded, "Exactly! If the unsub is Muslim, more than likely a recent convert to Islam, he would have to do his evening prayers right after sunset. Right now the sun is setting around 7:40 every night."

"So he let's his victims slowly die while he prays and then shoots them in the head execution style before dumping the body? That's just cold, man," replied Morgan.

"I think I know what this is all about," stated Gideon. The team looked at him and waited. "We need Garcia."

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"Well, this is definitely a victim of the same killer," stated Cam to Zack. The pair was in Cam's lab examining the body. They had headed back to the lab with the body as soon as it was cleared to move in order to get a jump-start on the examination. "The knife wounds appear to be a match." Brennan had stayed with Booth and the others at the scene to make sure they had collected everything that could possibly be significant.

"The only main difference to this body and the previous victims is the severed limbs," added Zack. "They appear to be removed via an axe, but I'll know for sure when we removed the flesh."

Cam nodded, "I'm just about done with the initial exam and then he's all yours."

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"Speak, oh fortunate one," greeted Garcia through the phone.

"Garcia, I need you to see if there was some sort of incident involving the victims and Iraqi causalities," stated Gideon as they walked into Angela's office. The rest were starting to go through the files Hotch and JJ had obtained. "More than likely, we're looked for a bombing."

"Yes sir, give me just a second," replied Garcia as she typed away. She was always more formal with Gideon. Only a few seconds past before she had something. "Both Righten and Thomlinson were part of a tactical group that was ambushed near a mosque. The team tried to take out their attackers, but one of the terrorists set off a bomb before they could."

"How many casualties?" Gideon asked, getting the team's attention.

"Twenty-five. One of the soldiers, Private First Class Dan Haroon, and three members of the terrorist group. The rest were women and children, the oldest child was eleven," Garcia replied with a sad sigh. "Forty more were injured."

"That's probably it. I need the names of the rest of that team," Gideon replied.

"Already sent it to Morgan," Garcia smiled. Just then Morgan's cell phone beeped and he pulled up the list of names.

"Thanks, good job." Gideon hung up and turned to the rest. "Righten, Thomlinson, probably our third victim, and our unsub were ambushed near a mosque where a terrorist exploded a bomb, killing one of their team and twenty-one women and children. Forty others were also injured."

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"Zack, do we have our bones yet?" asked Brennan, just about bursting through the doors of the lab for cleaning bones. Currently, the bones were being cleaned by Zack's favorite – the flesh-eating beetles. Booth followed her even though he didn't really care for that particular lab. Too many creepy things.

"Just another couple minutes. They were really hungry today," replied Zack. Neither Zack or Brennan noticed Booth grimace at that comment.

"Okay. I want you to take the skeleton and examine it and comparing it to the other victims. I'll take the skull and get the markers for Angela," stated Brennan. Getting the victims identity was their first priority at this point. She noticed Booth looking around, trying to not study anything too closely and rolled her eyes. "You know Booth," she started, getting his attention. "You could join your FBI buddies." She was still slightly angered at the situation. This person shouldn't have had to die like this.

"Bones, I work with you. You're my partner," he countered, knowing she was still upset. Truth be told, so was he, but he also knew the other agents were doing their job to the best of their abilities. "We can join them when we have the skull."

"That shouldn't be too long then," stated Zack, pulling the now clean skull out of the clear box, shaking off a few of the beetles in the process.

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"So our unsub is blaming the members of his team for the deaths and injuries of those women and children?" asked Emily after Gideon's information sunk in. "That's an odd stressor, considering everything they probably saw over there."

"It just takes one event," stated Hotch. "And now he's making them pay by mimicking what happened to them."

"The cuts from chards of glass, the broken bones from impact, which would also fit with the latest victim's severed limbs, and burns from the explosion," added Reid. The group didn't notice Brennan, Booth, and Angela had walked in the room shortly after Gideon had hung up from Garcia. Brennan and Angela went over to her desk with the skull Brennan had carried in. Booth stood by them near the table, listening.

"What about the bullet wounds then?" asked Morgan.

"Unfortunately, innocent people get caught in the middle of gun fire during those situations all the time," stated Booth, now being noticed by the team.

"He would know that from experience; he was an Army sniper," added Brennan from Angela's desk. She had just finished the facial markers and now Angela was typing away on her computer.

"Bones," groaned Booth, shaking his head.

Gideon smiled faintly, ignoring Brennan's comment, "Thanks Booth. And the drugs were used to symbolize the fact that these victims weren't prepared, that they couldn't even cry out in pain it happened so fast."

The team was silent for a second, absorbing in the profile, before Hotch spoke up again. "Okay, let's start going through the files on the list of names from Garcia." The whole team and Booth each grabbed a file, flipping them open. Silently, they all studied their files to see if the profile matched the paperwork in their hands.

"I've got a face for your latest victim," interrupted Angela after a few minutes. They all turned to her and studied the holographic image of a young man with hazel eyes and sandy brown hair. Booth stared at it for a second and then flipped the file in his hand back open.

"I think I've got him," he stated. Hotch and Gideon looked over his shoulder at the photo in the file and then back up at the Angela's image.

"Private First Class Evan White," stated Hotch. "We should send that to Garcia to verify before notifying the family." Morgan walked over to Angela and Brennan to get it sent and flipped open his phone at the same time.

"Hey sugar," he greeted.

"Gorgeous, you must be psychic. I was just about to call you with something," answered Garcia. "You might actually want to put me on speaker phone for this."

"Okay." Morgan changed the settings on his phone to speaker while gesturing to Angela send the image, which she did. "What do you have?"

"So I went ahead and ran the remaining names in that group to see if anything odd came up," she started. "Apparently one of the men had to be pulled away from the scene of the explosion, away from the body of an Iraqi woman. There are a few warnings in his record after that incident and he placed a request to be discharged once they got back to the States."

"The woman was probably his lover," stated JJ, receiving nods.

"That would be a much bigger stressor than just being there at the explosion," added Reid.

"What's the name, Garcia?" asked Hotch.

"Private Mark Easton," she replied. "Oh, and I just got your image and compared it. It's a definite match for a Private First Class Evan White."

"Thanks Garcia," Morgan stated, hanging up.

"Wasn't that the same name Mrs. Thomlinson mentioned?" asked Emily, looking at Reid and Morgan.

Reid nodded, "Yes it was." He flipped open a few more of the files on the table, "Here's his record." He skimmed it over for a second, using his ability to read faster than any person should be allowed to his advantage. He glanced back up at Gideon and Hotch. "This has to be him."

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	9. Team Work

Author's Note: Sorry for the delay…life got in the way this time. Stupid GRE. A couple of you astutely noticed a typo in chapter 8. Victim #3 is Evan White; I wasn't trying to confuse you by making him Dale White when Garcia confirmed his ID. That was just a typo that got completely overlooked. Sorry for any confusion! It should be fixed as of this update. Now, on with the story! We're almost done!

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**Reading the Bones**

Chapter Nine: Team Work

By Ann Parker

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"What makes you so sure?" asked Brennan as everyone's attention went to the young genius.

"Private Mark Easton, age twenty-seven. Raised by his mother, a nurse at Bethesda Medical Center," Reid started.

"Explains choosing to become the unit's medic," commented Emily.

"Oh my pretties, that explains even more," stated Garcia through Morgan's phone, which was still on speaker. "Anna Easton, RN, has worked for over 20 years in Bethesda's psychiatric ward. And isn't your drug, phenotripicol, used ---"

"Used to subdue patients during psychotic episodes," interrupted Gideon. "That's how he knew of the drug, perhaps even got his hands on it."

"Ah…yes," stated Garcia, startled at Gideon interrupting her. "And, as it happens, I have a report from Bethesda stating a case of your drug went missing a week ago."

"We need to go pick up this guy," stated Booth, getting ready to head out the door.

"I agree," stated Hotch. "Reid and JJ, notify the latest victim's family. Garcia, see if anyone else from that unit has been reported missing. Easton is devolving and fast."

"Devolving?" asked Angela.

"Falling apart," supplied Morgan. "It means he's becoming more frantic, more reckless, and all the more dangerous." Angela nodded.

"The rest of us are going to pay him a visit," finished Hotch, grabbing the file with his address from Reid and quickly heading out the door. Morgan, Gideon, Emily, Booth, and Brennan all quickly followed suit.

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"Oh my god," Krista White whispered, taking a shaky step backwards. Reid and JJ both reached out to steady her, but Reid let JJ take over and steer the distraught woman to the nearest chair – one at the couple's dining room table. "But I just talked to him this morning. Are you sure it's him?"

"DNA will provide a 100 confirmation, but yes ma'am, I'm afraid we are," replied Reid.

A small sob escaped Krista's lips and Reid sighed softly to himself. This was the one part of the job he truly hated and here he was already visiting his second victim's family in one day. He just never really knew how to handle their emotions. All he could hope was that they would catch the unsub before he had another home to visit. "Ma'am," JJ's soft, caring voice pulled him back to the task at hand. He watched as JJ glanced at him, silently asking a question. He nodded and JJ turned back to Krista. "Ma'am, do you know a Mark Easton?"

Krista's head snapped up at the sound of that name. She opened her mouth to reply when a rapid knock came from her front door.

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"Easton! FBI, open up!" yelled Booth as the group flanked the fifth floor apartment door. All were wearing their kevlar vests except for Brennan, who was ordered to stand in the back, much to her annoyance. There was no response at the door.

Morgan pounded on the door. "FBI!" Still no response. Morgan turned the doorknob easily, but the white door was still deadbolted shut. Morgan turned to the accompanying Swat team to have them bust open the door, but Booth stopped him.

"I've got a faster way," Booth commented and stepped back from the door to the opposite side of the hall. A gunshot rang out and soon all was left was a bullet hole.

"Nice shot," stated Morgan with a slight smile as he proceeded to kick down the door. "FBI Easton! Come out with your hands up!" Morgan and Booth were the first to enter the apartment. As they started to go through the living and dining rooms, declaring them all clear, Hotch, Gideon, Emily followed them in. It didn't take them long to determine that the apartment was empty. Brennan was quick to enter the apartment upon hearing that. In the spare bedroom, facing east, Gideon found a prayer rug and the Koran. The apartment was sparsely decorated other than that. A small 13" television sat in the living room with one chair. A circular, wooden table and chair adorned the dining room. A small dresser and a mattress with crisp, white sheets sat in the middle of the otherwise bare bedroom.

Brennan did a brief walk around the apartment before meeting Booth and Hotch in the dining room and declaring, "This is not where he kills his victims."

"I agree," stated Gideon, emerging from the living room. Morgan and Emily joined them from other locations in the apartment. "He wouldn't want to soil where he prays to Allah."

"That and how could he possibly get a charred, dismembered, and bloody corpse down five flights of stairs without being noticed?" she retorted. Booth just rolled his eyes, deciding to not comment.

"We need more information on this guy," added Hotch. Before he could even say a word, Morgan had flipped open his cell phone.

"Hey gorgeous."

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"What are you doing?" asked Zack, approaching Hodgins who was examining the few remnants they were able to obtain from the last victim. Hodgins continued to comb through the few pieces of fabric.

"There has got to be something here to help catch the guy. If he sped up his ritual, as they called it, then he probably made a mistake. I have to find it," he replied. He didn't even hear the doors of the lab open to reveal Angela and Cam as he spoke.

"You just want to show them up," stated Angela. Hodgins ignored her and picked up the chuck of the shoe sole that didn't get completely destroyed in the fire. He placed it back on the table with the sole facing up and grabbed his magnifying glass to examine it.

"Jack, do you actually think you're going to find something?" asked Cam as the three watched him. Hodgins simply grunted as he continued to look it over. He noticed what appeared to be small flecks of metal on the heel of the boot where they had been dragged. As he continued to look it over something red reflected light back at him, causing him to chuckle. The other three exchanged a concerned look.

"Jack, sweetie?" asked Angela.

"I got it!" Hodgins exclaimed, digging out his cell phone.

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Reid led Krista to the front door, looking through the peephole to make sure it wasn't Easton, which it wasn't. It was, however, a young man of with slightly long, black hair – much like himself – and a pair of glasses. He nodded and Krista opened the door.

"Oh thank god you're home, Krista," the man blurted out, walking past her, oblivious to the two agents in the room. "Have you seen Tina today? She was supposed to pick up Cory from soccer practice a half hour ago, but she didn't show and she's not answering her cell phone." This came out as a rambling speech as he paced in front of them, running a hand through his hair.

"I'm sorry I --" Krista's voice squeaked slightly, her ever-present tears leaving streaks down her face. "I haven't, Sam." The man really looked at her this time, taking in her appearance.

"Who is Tina?" asked Reid, making their presence known to Sam.

"My wife. Who are you? Why are you crying Krista?" asked Sam, the panic previously in his voice now being replaced with fear.

"Agent Jareau and Dr. Reid of the FBI, Mr…" started JJ, coming over by Krista and steering her back to a chair.

"Morris, Sam Morris. My wife Tina serves with Krista's husband," Sam supplied. Reid and JJ exchanged a quick look.

"She's in the same unit?" asked Reid, pulling out his cell phone. Sam nodded.

"What's going on?" he asked, taking a seat next to Krista. JJ sighed softly as she began to fill Sam in on the situation. Reid took that moment to walk out of the room and call Gideon.

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"What exactly am I supposed to be looking for again?" asked Garcia as her fingers moved at lightening speed across her keyboard. Various screens popped up with information.

"We need to find some location he might choose to use as his torture chamber," replied Morgan.

"Oh, sugar, you didn't need to remind me of that detail," Garcia grimaced. Morgan smiled faintly. "Okay, I've got his mother's house on the upper west side. Wouldn't that be a present for mommy?"

"Too far away. We need something close to the dump sites," Morgan stated. Just then two cell phones went off behind him and he turned to see Dr. Brennan and Gideon answer their phones.

"Brennan." Morgan watched the doctor as Garcia continued to type away. Gideon turned from the group, walking away to hear easier. Morgan, and just about the rest of the group, noticed a small smile appeared on her lips. "Great work, Jack."

"What did Hodgins find?" asked Booth as she hung up.

"He noticed small metal fragments and a shard of tail light glass in the sole of the last victim," she replied, glancing at Morgan as she said this.

"Garcia, does he have any connection to a place with cars, like a repair shop?" asked Morgan.

"Let me see," she replied and he could hear her fingers move at an ultra fast speed. "Uh huh, his uncle left him his auto repair and towing shop about 2 years ago. It went under while he was still in Iraq; no one has bought the location from him."

"Where is it?" asked Morgan, taking the pen and paper from Hotch, who already had it out. He could tell by the look on the younger man's face that she had something.

"About three blocks from the dump sites," she supplied. She then proceeded to give him the address as Gideon returned to the group.

"You rock, girl. Thanks," Morgan hung up. "I've got a location."

Gideon sighed, "And I've got the name of the next victim."

"What? Who is it?" asked Emily.

"Private First Class Tina Morris. She's a neighbor of the White's and her husband came looking for her while JJ and Reid were interviewing the widow," Gideon replied.

"Let's move," stated Booth. The whole group nodded and started to head out the door. When they had just about reached outside, Hotch started to call in for back up to meet them at the location when Brennan appeared next to him.

"Tell the paramedics to make sure they have a vial of antihemeramine with them, it will counteract the phenotripicol," she stated. Hotch nodded and relayed the information as they all climbed into their SUVs.

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She wanted to scream so badly; the pain was excruciating. He had cut her at least seven times, but it was all starting run together so it could have been more. She had been just about to get in her car at the base to pick up her son when she heard her name being called. She turned, only to have someone grab her and inject something into her neck. She pasted out slightly from the shock and woke up in the back of a truck watching the stars go by. They were just now starting to appear in the night sky. It took her only seconds to realize that she couldn't move, she couldn't even scream or cry. She was denied even those basic abilities.

Now she was propped up on some metal table as someone she thought she knew was hurting her. She had always suspected that Mark wasn't exactly normal, but she never thought he was capable of the torture he was putting her through. He was supposed to be the unit's medic, the one that took care of the injured, not the one inflicting the pain. She knew combat had changed him; it had changed her. But this…it was incomprehensible. And yet she could feel her warm blood touching her skin and her clothing sucking it up like a dry sponge. He moved her arm, hanging it off the table, and went to grab something. She knew it wasn't good, whatever it was.

Wait, did she hear sirens in the background? Someone couldn't possibly be coming to rescue her, could they? Probably not, sirens go off all the time in the city. It wasn't until she heard some banging and shouting and felt a cool blade on her throat that she knew they were here for her.

"Drop it, Easton!" a strong, male voice yelled. She couldn't see them, her eyes permanently fixated on the rusty ceiling.

"She must pay! They all must pay! The infidels must pay for the innocent blood on their hands!" Mark exclaimed behind her. If she could have cringed, she would have. Infidels…why hadn't she seen this sooner? Why hadn't anyone else on the unit notice the change in him when they had to pull him away from that Iraqi woman's corpse? Any more thoughts on that stopped as she felt the blade press against her neck.

"What about the blood on your hands, Easton? You think Allah will reward you for your vengeance?" asked another male voice, this one much older sounding.

"They weren't believers of the faith, they are of no consequence," Mark spat out, his voice laced with venom. "Just like her!" She felt the blade press against her skin deeper and pain and fear shot through her body once more. A gunshot rang out. The blade slipped away from her throat making a large clanking noise on the ground.

She heard several voices and shuffling around until a warm hand applied light pressure on her neck to stop the little bit of blood from escaping. Green eyes met hers and a soft, caring voice filled her ears. "You're going to be okay, Tina, I promise." The woman placed another hand on her cheek and smiled. "You're going to be okay."

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	10. The Profilers and the Squints

**Reading the Bones**

Chapter Ten: The Profilers and the Squints

By Ann Parker

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"Oh, that's great! Thanks Hotch. Yeah, we'll meet you here at the Jeffersonian." Reid hung up his cell phone and turned to JJ. They were back in Angela's office, compiling all their files to head back to Quantico. They had been too far away to be of any help at Easton's auto repair shop so they had returned to wrap up things on this end. Everyone but Angela had left to help collect evidence after Booth had shot Easton through the shoulder and they had him in custody. Gideon and Bones had gone with Tina to the hospital. The squint in question had wandered away about ten minutes ago, leaving them alone in her office.

"Hotch just said that the doctors think Private Morris will make a full recovery. They were getting ready to head back after getting Gideon and Dr. Brennan," Reid informed her and she nodded with a smile.

"This has been one crazy day," she stated, boxing up all the files they had obtained from Command Sergeant Johnson, except for the files on the victims and on Easton.

"You're telling me." JJ and Reid both spun around to the office's entrance at the sound of Garcia's voice. There she stood, arm in arm with Angela. Both had large smiles on their faces.

"Garcia, what are you doing here?" asked Reid.

"You'll find out soon enough, sugar," she teased. Angela laughed as she walked over to a cupboard and grabbed a box. It was full of glass beakers and stirring rods. Okay, now his interest was peaked.

"Finish up and tell everyone to meet us upstairs," instructed Angela as the two technical whizzes left the office. It was then that the pair noticed Garcia was carrying two large grocery bags.

"They can't be up to any good," commented JJ with a smile. A slight chuckle escaped Reid's lips as he nodded. JJ's cell phone rang and she wandered down the hallway to answer it. Undoubtedly the press. Reid sighed as he watched her walk away. Because of that, he didn't realize that a curly haired scientist was watching him. He turned back to the paper work and finished boxing up the last few files that would be needed for Easton's prosecution.

"Don't wait, man," Hodgins stated, slightly startling Reid as he walked into Angela's office.

Reid furrowed his brow and looked at him, "What are you talking about?"

"Don't wait on asking her out. Go for it. Believe me, don't waste time," Hodgins replied.

Reid's mouth gaped open for a second, "How did you--"

"Spence," JJ chose that moment to pop her head back into the room. "The rest are back. Time to figure out what those two girls are up to."

Reid nodded, "Yeah, okay." JJ left the room and Reid looked back at Hodgins who simply smiled and patted him on the arm as they left the office.

"Wait, what did she mean by 'those two girls?'" asked Hodgins as they walked over where the rest of the BAU team, Booth, and Brennan were. Zack and Cam walked out of another lab. Although they had managed to save the last victim, it wouldn't have appeared that way to anyone that had seen their faces. All looked fatigued; their eyes full of sorrow for the victims lost and for the man responsible. This case had taken a lot out of all of them. Even though they were all used to seeing horrendous things, it was clear that this particular case would be one that would stick with them for a while.

"Did you take care of all the evidence?" asked Brennan, turning to Zack and Cam. Zack nodded.

"It's all bagged and tagged and ready for the bureau to take," replied Cam.

"Why did I see Ester in the parking lot?" asked Emily once she spotted Reid and JJ.

"Because Garcia and Angela are up to something," replied JJ, tucking some of her hair behind her ear.

"Where is she?" asked Morgan, a smile already creeping across his face.

"Up here, stud!" exclaimed Garcia. Everyone's heads snapped up to the balcony above them to see Garcia and Angela leaning over the railing. Both had a beaker with some liquid in them. The stir rods appeared to have some sort of food attached to them, probably olives.

"What are you up to, sweetness?" Morgan asked for everyone.

"Just some glug, glug, woohoo," replied Angela, twirling a finger of her free hand as she grinned. Zack, Hodgins, and Brennan all smiled.

"Glug, glug, woohoo?" asked Gideon, the words sounding foreign in his mouth. The rest of the BAU team also appeared to be confused.

"It's time to partake in some beverages that will help us relax after dealing with such a brutal case," replied Zack.

Emily raised an eyebrow, "Come again?"

"Time to get drunk, man," replied Hodgins as he turned to go upstairs. The rest of the squints and Booth all began to follow. The profilers looked at Hotch to gauge whether or not they should stay.

"I could use a drink," Hotch sighed and the group quickly joined the rest. What they found when they reached the balcony was a bunch of beakers next to some various bottles of alcohol and bags of chips on the two round, glass coffee tables. One was a little larger than the other. The green, cushioned couches and chairs surrounded the tables, forming almost two separate circles in the process.

"So, what brought this on?" asked JJ.

"Pen and I got to talking and with the way this case turned out we both decided everyone could use a little relaxation," answered Angela. Garcia and her clunked their glasses, well beakers, together as they sat at the larger circle with Hodgins and Zack. Brennan, Booth, and Cam were around the other circle. The profilers took their seats around the tables, this time a little more mixed up. Morgan slid in next to Garcia, with JJ taking a seat next to him. Reid sat next to her and Zack. Emily took a seat between Zack and Hodgins. Gideon and Hotch sat down next to each other, with Brennan at Gideon's other side and Cam at Hotch's.

Morgan picked up one of the beakers and eyed it. "These haven't had any body parts or weird fluids in them, have they?" he asked.

"Not today," replied Zack with a grin. Morgan studied him as the rest laughed.

"I believe he's kidding, Morgan," smiled Reid as he poured himself a small drink.

"No really, genius?" Morgan teased, roughing up Reid's hair. Reid rolled his eyes at the older man as he poured JJ's drink as well.

"Thanks Spence," she replied and they exchanged smiles. Hodgins sighed to himself. That was apparently going to take some work.

At the other table, a slightly more sober conversation was taking place. At the moment, Gideon was studying Booth. "Booth, what made you decide to go for his shoulder?" Gideon has expected Easton to not make it out alive. Brennan turned to her partner, waiting to hear his answer. She too hadn't expected that.

"Easton didn't deserve to die that easily," Booth stated, looking down at his drink. "No one does after what he did."

"Very true," commented Hotch as the group took a drink. Laughter from the other group pulled them out of their thoughts.

"Oh, this is too much fun! Okay, Zack, your turn," stated Angela. "'I have a very bad feeling about this.'"

Zack smirked, "Too easy, Angela. Luke Skywalker in _Star Wars IV: A New Hope_." Reid nodded in agreement. "Drink!" Everyone but Reid and Zack took a sip of their drinks as laughter continued to fill the room.

"Okay, I've got one for you Reid. 'Not bad for a little fur ball,'" stated Morgan. Everyone stared at Reid, even the other table, now very amused at the Star Wars quote battle going on.

Reid rolled his eyes, "Please Morgan. Han in _Episode VI: Return of the Jedi_." Morgan groaned, signaling to everyone that Reid, as always, was right. They all took a drink.

"This is too easy for them," complained Emily.

"What isn't?" asked Angela.

"I'll drink to that," added Garcia, clanking glasses with Angela again as the group laughed some more.

Cam smiled, turning back to the calmer group at her table. "Looks like everyone is finally getting along." The group smiled, taking sips of their drinks. All recalled Hodgins' _slight_ annoyance at his profile, among others.

"That reminds me," started Brennan, turning to Gideon. "How were you able to get all that information on Jack? Did you have Garcia feed you some or did Emily tell you about times with him?" She still doubted that he was able to build that accurate of a profile after just meeting him.

Gideon smiled ever so faintly, "You don't think I could have figured that information out on my own?" Brennan shook her head. "Can't you tell a person's life story by just examining their bones?"

"Yes, but I have scientific procedures to back my findings," she countered.

"And countless interviews with killers and the study of the brain aren't scientific?" asked Hotch, now also smirking. Even after the day they'd had working together, she still didn't believe in their science.

"Well---"

"Bones," injected Booth. She turned to him and he flashed one of his signature grins at her, making her heart skip a beat for just a second. "Just let it go, okay?" He clanked his beaker into hers and smiled again. She smiled in return and shook her head.

"Well, regardless," she started, changing what she was going to say. "I still don't believe in psychology, but I think you did a good job." Gideon and Hotch smiled.

"As did you and your team here, Dr. Brennan," replied Hotch.

"In fact, I wouldn't be overly opposed to working with you again," she added.

"Oh, I would be," countered Booth, taking a swig of his drink. She turned to him, confused.

"But you just---"

"What I think he means," added Cam, "is that working with them again means there is a _need_ for the teams to work together again."

"Something none of us would wish for," finished Gideon. Brennan nodded in complete agreement.

"I'll drink to that," Hotch stated and the group laughed slightly while taking a drink.

They all knew that come tomorrow morning they would be returning back to their corners of the crime universe. There would be another criminal to catch; another victim to avenge. But for now, sitting together as laughter filled the air, things were at peace for the profilers and the squints. And that was just fine with them.

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**The End**

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I hope everyone enjoyed this little creation. Even though it took longer than anticipated, I'm quite proud of my first real hardcore case-fic and my first attempt at writing Bones. I hope I made all of you Bones fans happy with my representation of Booth, Bones, and the Squints. Thank you to all that have read – and in particular, those that have been kind enough to share your thoughts in reviews. I just love seeing those in my mailbox; its one of the reasons I love to write. Also, thank you for be patient. I didn't mean of it to take this long.

I left this open for the remote possibility of a sequel, but even if that does happen I will guarantee that it won't be for a long time. My last semester of undergrad is just starting up and I have other fanfics that must first be dealt with. But, if inspiration hits me, I could see a sequel maybe next year. We'll just have to see.

Thanks again for reading!

Ann Parker

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